CN112877675A

CN112877675A - Atomic layer deposition chamber with funnel-shaped gas distribution channel and gas distribution plate

Info

Publication number: CN112877675A
Application number: CN202110047033.1A
Authority: CN
Inventors: ***·M·拉希德; 斯里尼瓦斯·甘迪科塔; 马里奥·丹·桑切斯; 简国强; 杨义雄; 迪帕克·贾达夫; 阿什托西·阿咖瓦
Original assignee: Applied Materials Inc
Current assignee: Applied Materials Inc
Priority date: 2015-04-22
Filing date: 2016-04-19
Publication date: 2021-06-01
Anticipated expiration: 2036-04-19
Also published as: SG10202111772XA; KR20170140282A; IL284142A; EP3286352A4; CN112877675B; IL284142B2; SG11201707640WA; US20160312360A1; CN107532297B; TWI693298B; TW201718927A; US20210246552A1; KR102640272B1; US11384432B2; IL284142B1; TWI722871B; IL254759A; KR102631744B1; TW202028525A; IL254759B2

Abstract

Methods and apparatus for processing a substrate are provided herein. In some embodiments, a substrate processing chamber comprises: a chamber body; a chamber lid assembly having an outer shell (housing) surrounding a central passage extending along a central axis and having an upper portion and a lower portion; a cover plate coupled to the housing and having a contoured bottom surface extending downwardly and outwardly from a central opening coupled to a lower portion of the central channel to a peripheral portion of the cover plate; and a gas distribution plate disposed under the cover plate and having a plurality of apertures (apertures) disposed therethrough.

Description

Atomic layer deposition chamber with funnel-shaped gas distribution channel and gas distribution plate

The present application is a divisional application of the invention patent application entitled "atomic layer deposition chamber with funnel-shaped gas distribution channel and gas distribution plate" filed as 2016, 19/4, 201680022766.7.

Technical Field

Embodiments of the present disclosure generally relate to atomic layer deposition apparatus and methods.

Background

Reliable fabrication of submicron (submicron) and smaller features is a key technology for next generation semiconductor devices, Very Large Scale Integrated (VLSI) and Ultra Large Scale Integrated (ULSI) circuits. However, as the edge of circuit technology approaches, the scaling of interconnect (interconnect) dimensions in VLSI and ULSI technologies places additional demands on process capability. The multi-layer interconnects that are in the heart of VLSI and ULSI technologies use precision processing of high aspect ratio features, such as vias (via) and other interconnects. Reliable formation of these interconnects is very important to the success of VLSI and ULSI and the continuing efforts to increase circuit density and quality of individual substrates.

As circuit density increases, the width of interconnects (such as vias, trenches, contacts, and other features) and the width of the dielectric material therebetween decreases, but at the same time the thickness of the dielectric layer remains substantially constant, resulting in an increased aspect ratio of the height to width of the features. Many conventional deposition processes have difficulty filling aspect ratios in excess of 4: 1, in particular, it is difficult to fill the submicron structures with aspect ratios exceeding 10: 1, submicron structure. Accordingly, there is currently great effort to form substantially void-free and seam-free submicron features with high aspect ratios.

Atomic Layer Deposition (ALD) is a deposition process developed to deposit a layer of material on features having a high aspect ratio. One example of an ALD process includes the sequential introduction of gas pulses. For example, one cycle of sequential introduction of gas pulses may contain a pulse of a first reactant gas, followed by a pulse of a purge gas and/or pump evacuation (pump equalization), followed by a pulse of a second reactant gas, followed by a pulse of a purge gas and/or pump evacuation. The term "gas" as used herein is defined to encompass a single gas or a plurality of gases. The sequential introduction of the separate pulses of the first and second reactants may cause alternating self-limiting (self-limiting) adsorption of a monolayer of reactants on the surface of the substrate and thus form a monolayer of material for each cycle. The cycle may be repeated until a desired thickness of the deposited material. Pulses of purge gas and/or pump evacuation between pulses of a first reactant gas and pulses of a second reactant gas serve to reduce the likelihood of gas phase reactions of the reactants that result from excess amounts of reactants remaining in the chamber.

In some chamber designs for ALD processes, precursors and gases are delivered using a funnel lid through which the precursors are distributed via a plurality of injectors above the funnel lid. These injectors produce a circular motion of the injected gas, which is distributed through a funnel section in the center of the lid. The moment of inertia of the gas/ALD precursor molecules distributes these molecules from the center to the edges, resulting in improved uniform deposition. However, in some applications, the inventors have observed that there is a donut-shaped deposition profile near the center of the substrate being processed. It is believed that the donut shaped deposition profile is caused by the funnel shape of the lid and can cause integration problems for the customer.

Accordingly, the inventors have provided improved apparatus and methods for ALD processing of substrates.

Disclosure of Invention

In some embodiments, a substrate processing chamber comprises: a chamber body; a chamber lid assembly having a housing surrounding a central passage extending along a central axis and having an upper portion and a lower portion; a cover plate coupled to the housing and having a contoured bottom surface extending downwardly and outwardly from a central opening coupled to a lower portion of the central channel to a peripheral portion of the cover plate; a gas distribution plate disposed under the cover plate and having a plurality of slits disposed therethrough; a Remote Plasma Source (RPS) fluidly coupled to the central passage; an isolation collar coupled between the remote plasma source and the housing, wherein the isolation collar has an inner channel extending therethrough to fluidly couple the remote plasma source and the central channel; an exhaust conduit coupled to the isolation collar at a first end and coupled to a primary pumping channel at a second end; and a valve coupled to the exhaust conduit to selectively open or close the exhaust conduit.

In some embodiments, a method of processing a substrate comprises: flowing a first process gas into a gas distribution channel and a reaction zone of a process chamber; flowing the first process gas through a plurality of apertures in a gas distribution plate disposed in the reaction zone and onto the substrate; flowing a cleaning gas into the gas dispersion channel and the reaction zone; exhausting the cleaning gas through an exhaust system; flowing a second process gas into the gas dispersion channel and the reaction zone; flowing the second process gas through the plurality of apertures in the gas distribution plate and onto the substrate; flowing the cleaning gas into the gas dispersion channel and the reaction zone; and exhausting the cleaning gas through the exhaust system.

Other and further embodiments of the disclosure are described below.

Drawings

Embodiments of the present disclosure, briefly summarized above and discussed in more detail below, may be understood by reference to the illustrative embodiments of the disclosure, which are illustrated in the appended drawings. However, the appended drawings illustrate only typical embodiments of this disclosure and are therefore not to be considered limiting of its scope, for the disclosure may admit to other equally effective embodiments.

Fig. 1 depicts a schematic view of a process chamber according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

Fig. 2 depicts a schematic cross-sectional view of a processing chamber according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

Figure 3 depicts a schematic cross-sectional view of a cap assembly according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

Fig. 4A-4C depict schematic view diagrams of apertures configured through a gas distribution plate, according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

Fig. 5 depicts a flow chart illustrating a method of processing a substrate according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

To facilitate understanding, identical reference numerals have been used, where possible, to designate identical elements that are common to the figures. The figures are not drawn to scale and may be simplified for clarity. Elements and features of one embodiment may be beneficially incorporated in other embodiments without further recitation.

Detailed Description

Embodiments of the present disclosure provide apparatus and methods that may be used to clean a substrate processing chamber, such as an Atomic Layer Deposition (ALD) chamber, and to deposit materials during, for example, an ALD process. Embodiments include substrate processing chambers and gas delivery systems, including remote plasma sources and gas distribution plates. Other embodiments provide methods for depositing materials using these gas delivery systems during ALD processes. Examples of processing chambers for incorporation into the apparatus described herein include high dielectric constant (i.e., high-k) and metal ALD deposition chambers, which are available from applied materials, santa clara, california. The following description of the process chamber is provided for contextual and exemplary purposes and should not be read or construed to limit the scope of the present disclosure.

Fig. 1 is a schematic view of a substrate processing chamber (processing chamber 100) according to some embodiments of the present disclosure, the processing chamber 100 including a gas delivery system 130 suitable for ALD processes. Fig. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the processing chamber 100. The processing chamber 100 includes a chamber body 102, the chamber body 102 having a processing volume within the chamber body 102 and below a chamber lid assembly 132. The slit valve 108 of the processing chamber 100 provides an access path for a robot (not shown) to transfer a substrate 110 (e.g., a 200mm or 300mm semiconductor wafer or glass substrate) to the processing chamber 100 and retrieve the substrate 110 from the processing chamber 100. A chamber liner 177 is disposed along the walls of the processing chamber 100 to protect the chamber from the corrosive gases used during processing/cleaning.

The substrate support 112 supports a substrate 110 on a substrate receiving surface 111 in the processing chamber 100. The substrate support 112 is mounted to a lift motor 114 to raise and lower the substrate support 112 and a substrate 110 disposed thereon. A lift plate 116 (shown in figure 2) coupled to a lift motor 118 is mounted in the processing chamber 100 to raise and lower lift pins 120, which lift pins 120 are movably disposed through the substrate support 112. The lift pins 120 raise and lower the substrate 110 above the surface of the substrate support 112. The substrate support 112 may comprise a vacuum chuck (not shown), an electrostatic chuck (not shown), or a clamp ring (not shown) for securing the substrate 110 to the substrate support 112 during a deposition process.

The temperature of the substrate support 112 may be adjusted to control the temperature of the substrate 110. For example, the substrate support 112 may be heated with an embedded heating element, such as a resistive heater (not shown), or may be heated using radiant heat, such as heating lamps (not shown) disposed above the substrate support 112. The purge ring 122 may be disposed on the substrate support 112 to define a purge channel 124, the purge channel 124 providing a purge gas to the peripheral portion of the substrate 110 to prevent deposition on the peripheral portion of the substrate 110.

A gas delivery system 130 is disposed in an upper portion of the chamber body 102 to provide gases (e.g., process gases and/or purge gases) to the processing chamber 100. A vacuum system (not shown) communicates with the pumping channel 179 to evacuate any desired gases from the process chamber 100 and to help maintain a desired pressure or range of pressures within the process chamber 100.

In some embodiments, the chamber lid assembly 132 includes a gas dispersion channel 134, the gas dispersion channel 134 extending through a central portion of the chamber lid assembly 132. As shown in fig. 1 and 2, the gas dispersion channel 134 extends vertically toward the substrate receiving surface 111 and also extends along a central axis 133 of the gas dispersion channel 134, through the cover plate 170, and to the lower surface 160. In some embodiments, the upper portion of the gas dispersion channel 134 is generally cylindrical along the central axis 133, and the lower portion of the gas dispersion channel 134 is tapered away from the central axis 133. The lower surface 160 is sized and shaped to substantially cover the substrate 110 disposed on the substrate receiving surface 111 of the substrate support 112. The lower surface 160 tapers from the outer edge of the cover plate 170 towards the gas dispersion channel 134. The gas delivery system 130 may provide one or more gases to the gas distribution channel 134 for processing the substrate 110. In some embodiments, the gas delivery system 130 may be coupled to the gas dispersion channel 134 via one gas inlet. In some embodiments, for example as shown in fig. 3, the gas delivery system may be coupled to the gas dispersion channel 134 via a plurality of inlets.

As depicted in fig. 3, the annular gas flow 174 illustrating the flow of the process gas through the gas distribution channel 134 may contain various types of flow patterns. In some embodiments, the process gas may be forced to revolve around the central axis 133 of the gas dispersion channel 134 as it passes through the dispersion channel (revolution). In such embodiments, annular gas flow 174 may contain various annular flow patterns, such as a vortex pattern, a helix (helix) pattern, a spiral (helical) pattern, or a derivative of the above.

While providing the annular flow 174 is advantageous for numerous applications, the inventors have found that in some applications, the annular flow can cause non-uniform processing results. The inventors have observed that the gas flow may induce a circular deposition profile near the center of the substrate 110 being processed. The circular ring-shaped distribution curve may be caused by the funnel shape of the gas dispersion channel 134. Thus, in some embodiments, the processing chamber 100 further comprises a gas distribution plate 125 having a plurality of apertures 126, the apertures 126 being disposed through the gas distribution plate 125. The gas distribution plate 125 extends to the surface of the gas distribution channel 134 such that the only path from the gas distribution channel 134 to the substrate passes through the plurality of slits 126 of the gas distribution plate 125. The gas distribution plate 125 advantageously creates a choking of gases passing through the gas distribution plate 125, resulting in more uniform deposition on the substrate 110 and thus substantially eliminating donut-shaped deposition caused by the rotating flow of gases.

In some embodiments, the gas distribution plate 125 is formed from a non-corrosive ceramic material, such as, for example, aluminum oxide or aluminum nitride. In some embodiments, each of the plurality of apertures 126 may have equal fluid conductivity. In some embodiments, the density of the plurality of apertures 126 (e.g., the number of apertures per unit area or the size of the aperture openings) may be varied across the gas distribution plate 125 to achieve a desired deposition profile on the substrate 110. For example, a higher density of apertures 126 may be disposed in the center of the gas distribution plate 125 to increase the deposition rate at the center of the substrate as compared to the edge of the substrate, thereby further improving deposition uniformity.

Although the plurality of slots 126 are described as cylindrical through holes, the plurality of slots 126 may have different profiles. Fig. 4A-4C depict different, non-limiting embodiments of the profile of the plurality of slits 126. In the embodiment depicted in FIG. 4A, the slit 126 is a cylindrical through-hole having a curved edge 402 surrounding the slit. In the embodiment depicted in FIG. 4B, the aperture 126 is a through-hole having an upper portion 404 that tapers inwardly toward the center of the aperture, a cylindrical central portion 405 that extends vertically to the upper surface 127 of the gas distribution plate 125, and a lower portion 406 that tapers outwardly from the center of the aperture. In the embodiment depicted in FIG. 4C, the aperture 126 is a through-hole having an upper portion 408, which has a undercut hole (undercut hole), a cylindrical central portion 409 extending perpendicularly to the upper surface 127 of the gas distribution plate 125, and a lower portion 410 that tapers outwardly from the center of the aperture. Other profiles of the plurality of slits 126 may be used instead to achieve optimal deposition uniformity during processing of the substrate 110.

Without wishing to be bound by theory, the inventors believe that the diameter of the gas dispersion channel 134 (which increases from the upper portion of the gas dispersion channel 134 to a constant value at a first point along the central axis 133 and from the first point to the lower portion 135 of the gas dispersion channel 134) allows for less adiabatic expansion of the gas through the gas dispersion channel 134, which helps control the temperature of the process gas contained in the annular gas flow 174. For example, a sudden adiabatic expansion of the gas delivered into the gas dispersion channel 134 may cause a drop in the temperature of the gas, which may cause the gas to condense and form droplets. On the other hand, it is believed that the tapered gas dispersion channel 134 provides less adiabatic expansion of the gas. Accordingly, more heat may be transferred to or from the gas, and thus the temperature of the gas may be more easily controlled by controlling the temperature of the chamber lid assembly 132. The gas dispersion channel 134 may taper gradually and contain one or more tapered inner surfaces, such as tapered straight surfaces, inner concave surfaces, outer convex surfaces, or combinations thereof, or may contain sections of one or more tapered inner surfaces (i.e., partially tapered and partially non-tapered).

As shown in fig. 3, the upper portion of the gas dispersion channel 134 is defined by an insert 300 disposed in the inner region of the housing 375. The insert 300 includes a cap 302 at an upper portion of the insert 300 and a central passage at least partially defining the gas dispersion channel 134. The cap 302 extends beyond the housing 375 to hold the insert 300 in place. The insert 300 and cap 302 include a plurality of O-rings 385 disposed between the insert 300 and the housing 375 to ensure a proper seal. The insert 300 includes a plurality of peripheral slits that form a corresponding plurality of

peripheral channels

360, 365, 370 when the insert 300 is inserted into the housing 375. A plurality of

peripheral channels

360, 365, 370 are fluidly coupled to the gas dispersion channel 134 via a corresponding plurality of

apertures

340, 345, 350. In the embodiment shown in fig. 3, the gas delivery system 130 is coupled to the gas dispersion channel 134 via a plurality of

gas feed lines

310, 315, 320.

Gas feed lines

310, 315, 320 are fluidly coupled to the plurality of

peripheral channels

360, 365, 370 to provide one or more gases to the gas dispersion channel 134.

Returning to fig. 1 and 2, the processing chamber 100 further comprises a chamber cleaning system comprising a Remote Plasma Source (RPS)190, an isolation collar 192 coupled to the RPS 190 at one end and to a cap 302 at an opposite end, a heater plate 198 coupled to an upper surface of the lid plate 170, and a cleaning gas (i.e., purge gas) source 197 fluidly coupled to the RPS 190. The cleaning gas source 197 may comprise any gas suitable for forming a plasma to clean the processing chamber 100. In some embodiments, for example, the cleaning gas may be nitrogen trifluoride (NF)₃). The isolation collar 192 includes an inner channel 193, the inner channel 193 being fluidly coupled to the gas distribution channel 134 through a plurality of holes 285 disposed in a central portion of the cap 302 to allow plasma to flow from the RPS 190, through the gas distribution channel 134 and into the reaction zone 164. The heater plate 198 may be formed of stainless steel and contain a plurality of heat resistant elements dispersed throughout the plate.

Typically, after the gas delivery system 130 provides the first gas to the gas dispersion channel 134, the cleaning gas flows through the gas dispersion channel 134 and the reaction zone 164 to rapidly purge the first gas from the gas dispersion channel 134 and the reaction zone 164. Thereafter, the second gas is provided to the gas dispersion channel 134 by the gas delivery system 130, and the cleaning gas again flows through the gas dispersion channel 134 and to the reaction zone 164 to rapidly purge the second gas from the gas dispersion channel 134 and the reaction zone 164. However, the addition of the gas distribution plate 125 can block (choke) the flow of the cleaning gas to the pumping channel 179 and prolong the cleaning process. In this regard, the inventors have incorporated an exhaust system 180, the exhaust system 180 having an exhaust conduit 184, the exhaust conduit 184 coupled to an isolation collar 192 at a first end 186 and coupled to a pumping channel 179 at a second end 188. A valve 182 is disposed in the exhaust conduit 184 to selectively fluidly couple the exhaust conduit 184 to the internal passage 193. In some embodiments, for example, the valve 182 may be a plunger-type valve having a plunger (plunger)202, the plunger 202 being movable between a first position (as shown in fig. 2) in which the plunger 202 fluidly couples the exhaust conduit 184 to the inner channel 193 and a second position in which the plunger 202 seals the exhaust conduit 184 from the inner channel 193. Each time a cleaning gas flows through the gas dispersion channel 134 and the reaction zone 164, the valve 182 opens and the cleaning gas rapidly discharges to the pumping channel 179.

When the gas pressure inside the processing chamber 100 exceeds the gas pressure inside the RPS 190, the process gas may flow up to the RPS 190 and damage the RPS 190. The plurality of holes 285 serve as choke points to prevent backflow of the process gas from flowing up through the inner passage 193 and into the RPS 190. The isolation collar 192 may be made of any material that is inert to the cleaning gas usedA reactive material is formed. In some embodiments, when the cleaning gas is NF₃The isolation collar 192 may be formed from aluminum. In some embodiments, the isolation collar 192 and the insert 300 may be formed of aluminum and coated with a coating to prevent the isolation collar 192 and the insert 300 from being corroded by the corrosive gases when in use. For example, the coating may be formed from nickel or aluminum oxide.

Referring to fig. 3, RPS 190 operates at a temperature less than or equal to about 40 f or greater. To advantageously isolate the RPS 190 from heat generated in the process chamber 100, a thermal isolation ring 394 is disposed between the isolation collar 192 and the cap 302. The thermal isolation ring 394 is formed of a metal having a low thermal conductivity (e.g., lower than the thermal conductivity of the isolation collar 192 and the cap 302). Additionally, an O-ring 385 may also be disposed between the isolation collar 192 and the cap 302 to further reduce the contact area between the isolation collar 192 and the cap 302. The combination of the insulating ring 394 and the O-ring 385 functions as a thermal choke(s) to ensure that heat generated in the processing chamber 100 does not negatively impact the RPS 190.

In some embodiments, when the lid plate 170 is heated beyond 100 lid plates, the processing chamber 100 may include a differential pumping circuit 250 to ensure that any process gases or byproducts trapped between the (trapped) O-rings 385 are exhausted to the pumping channel 179. The differential pumping line 250 is coupled to the cover plate 170 at a first end and to the housing 375 at a second end opposite the first end. The differential pumping circuit is fluidly coupled to the gas dispersion channel 134 and one or more channels 260, the channels 260 being formed in a region between two or more O-rings 385. When the valve 182 is opened to vent the gas dispersion channel 134, the differential pumping circuit vents the gas trapped between the O-rings 385.

Returning to fig. 3, a portion of the lower surface 160 of the chamber lid assembly 132 may be contoured or angled downward and outward from a central opening coupled to the gas distribution channel 134 to a peripheral portion of the chamber lid assembly 132 to help provide an improved velocity profile of the gas flow from the gas distribution channel 134 across the surface of the substrate 110 (i.e., from the center of the substrate to the edge of the substrate). Lower surface 160 may include one or more surfaces, such as a straight surface, a convex surface, a concave surface, or a combination thereof. In one example, the lower surface 160 is convex and funnel-shaped.

In one example, the lower surface 160 is sloped downward and outward toward the edge of the substrate receiving surface 111 to help reduce variations in the velocity of the process gas traveling between the lower surface 160 of the chamber lid assembly 132 and the substrate 110 while helping to uniformly expose the surface of the substrate 110 to the reactant gas. The components and parts of chamber lid assembly 132 may comprise materials such as stainless steel, aluminum, nickel-plated aluminum, nickel, alloys of the above materials, or other suitable materials. In one embodiment, the cover plate 170 may be manufactured, machined (machined), forged, or otherwise fabricated separately from a metal, such as aluminum, an aluminum alloy, steel, stainless steel, alloys thereof, or combinations thereof.

In some embodiments, the inner surface 131 of the gas distribution channel 134 and the lower surface 160 of the chamber lid assembly 132 may include a mirror finish to assist the flow of gas along the gas distribution channel 134 and the lower surface 160 of the chamber lid assembly 132.

Referring to fig. 1-3, in a process operation, a substrate 110 is transferred to the processing chamber 100 by a robot (not shown) through the slit valve 108. The substrate 110 is positioned on the substrate support 112 by the cooperation of the lift pins 120 and the robot. The substrate support 112 raises the substrate 110 to a position (close orientation) opposite and proximate to a lower surface of the gas distribution plate 125. The first gas flow may be injected into the gas dispersion channel 134 of the processing chamber 100 through the gas delivery system 130 together with or separately from (i.e., pulsed) the second gas flow. The first gas stream may contain a continuous flow of purge gas from a purge gas source and pulses of reactant gas from a reactant gas source, or may contain pulses of reactant gas from a reactant gas source and pulses of purge gas from a purge gas source. The second gas stream may contain a continuous flow of purge gas from a purge gas source and pulses of reactant gas from a reactant gas source, or may contain pulses of reactant gas from a reactant gas source and pulses of purge gas from a purge gas source.

The annular gas flow 174 travels through the gas dispersion channel 134 and then through the plurality of apertures 126 in the gas distribution plate 125. The gas is then deposited on the surface of the substrate 110. The downwardly sloped lower surface 160 of the chamber lid assembly 132 helps to reduce the variation in the velocity of the gas flow across the surface of the gas distribution plate 125. Excess gases, byproducts, etc. flow into the pumping channel 179 and are then exhausted from the processing chamber 100. Throughout the processing operation, the heater plate 198 may heat the chamber lid assembly 132 to a predetermined temperature to heat any solid byproducts that have accumulated on the walls of the processing chamber 100 (or a process kit disposed in the chamber). As a result, any accumulated solid by-products are vaporized. The vaporized byproducts are evacuated by a vacuum system (not shown) and pumping channel 179. In some embodiments, the predetermined temperature is greater than or equal to 150 degrees.

Fig. 5 illustrates a method 500 of processing a substrate according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. At step 505, a first process gas is flowed from the gas delivery system 130 into the gas distribution channel 134 and the reaction zone 164. At step 510, the first process gas flows through the plurality of apertures 126 in the gas distribution plate 125 and onto the substrate 110. At step 515, a purge gas is flowed into the gas distribution channel 134 and the reaction zone 164 to purge the first process gas. At step 520, the cleaning gas is exhausted through the exhaust system 180. At step 525, a second process gas is flowed into the gas distribution channel 134 and the reaction zone 164. At 530, the second process gas flows through the apertures 126 in the gas distribution plate 125 and onto the substrate 110. At 535, the cleaning gas is flowed into the gas distribution channel 134 and the reaction zone 164 to purge the second process gas. At step 540, the cleaning gas is exhausted through the exhaust system 180.

Other embodiments of chambers suitable for atomic layer deposition incorporate one or more of these features.

While the foregoing is directed to some embodiments of the present disclosure, other and further embodiments of the disclosure may be devised without departing from the basic scope thereof.

Claims

1. A lid for a substrate processing chamber, comprising:

a cover plate comprising an upper surface and a contoured bottom surface, the upper surface having a central opening and the contoured bottom surface having a first portion and a second portion, the first portion extending downwardly and outwardly from the central opening to a peripheral portion of the cover plate and the second portion extending radially outwardly along the peripheral portion of the cover plate;

an upper flange extending radially outward from the cover plate; and

one or more channels formed through the cover plate from a top surface of the cover plate to the second portion of the contoured bottom surface.

2. The lid of claim 1, wherein the upper surface of the cover plate is flat.

3. The lid of claim 1, wherein the upper surface of the cover plate and the second portion of the contoured bottom surface are parallel.

4. The cover of claim 1, further comprising:

an O-ring groove disposed in the upper surface of the cover plate around the central opening.

5. The lid of claim 1, wherein the contoured bottom surface has a mirror finish.

6. The lid of claim 1, wherein the cover plate is made of metal.

7. The lid of claim 1, wherein the cover plate is made of: aluminum, aluminum alloys, steel, stainless steel, alloys thereof, or combinations thereof.

8. The cap of any one of claims 1-7, further comprising:

a gas distribution plate configured to be coupled to the lid plate such that the contoured bottom surface of the lid plate extends to and contacts the gas distribution plate, wherein the gas distribution plate has a plurality of apertures disposed therethrough such that when the gas distribution plate is coupled to the lid plate, a sole path from the central opening to a region below the gas distribution plate passes through the plurality of apertures.

9. The lid of claim 8, wherein the gas distribution plate is formed of a non-corrosive ceramic material.

10. The lid of claim 8, wherein the gas distribution plate is formed of aluminum oxide or aluminum nitride.

11. The cover of claim 8, wherein each of the plurality of slits has an equivalent fluid conductivity.

12. The lid of claim 8, wherein each slit of the plurality of slits is a through-hole having an upper portion with a cone-pit hole, a cylindrical central portion extending perpendicularly to the upper surface of the gas distribution plate, and a lower portion tapering outward from a center of the slit.

13. The lid of claim 8, wherein the gas distribution plate comprises a central portion containing the plurality of apertures and a first stepped portion surrounding the plurality of apertures and configured to engage the second portion of the contoured bottom surface of the lid plate.

14. The lid of claim 13, wherein the gas distribution plate further comprises a second stepped portion surrounding the first stepped portion and configured to engage with the upper flange of the lid plate.

15. A lid assembly kit for a substrate processing chamber, comprising:

a cover plate comprising an upper surface and a contoured bottom surface, the upper surface having a central opening and the contoured bottom surface having a first portion and a second portion, the first portion extending downwardly and outwardly from the central opening to a peripheral portion of the cover plate and the second portion extending radially outwardly along the peripheral portion of the cover plate, the cover plate having an upper flange extending radially outwardly from the cover plate and one or more channels formed through the cover plate from a top surface of the cover plate to the second portion of the contoured bottom surface; and

a gas distribution plate configured to be coupled to the lid plate such that the contoured bottom surface of the lid plate extends to and contacts the gas distribution plate, wherein the gas distribution plate has a plurality of apertures disposed therethrough such that when the gas distribution plate is coupled to the lid plate, the only path from the central opening to the area below the gas distribution plate passes through the plurality of apertures, wherein the gas distribution plate includes a central portion, a first stepped portion and a second stepped portion, the central portion including the plurality of slits, the first step portion surrounds the plurality of apertures and is configured to engage with the second portion of the contoured bottom surface of the cap plate, the second step portion surrounds the first step portion and is configured to engage with the upper flange of the cap plate.

16. The lid assembly kit of claim 15, wherein each of the plurality of slits has an equivalent fluid conductivity.

17. The lid assembly kit of claim 15, wherein the gas distribution plate is formed of a non-corrosive ceramic material and the lid plate is made of metal.

18. The lid assembly kit of claim 15, wherein the gas distribution plate is formed of aluminum oxide or aluminum nitride, and the lid plate is made of: aluminum, aluminum alloys, steel, stainless steel, alloys thereof, or combinations thereof.